Biles battles through pain on spectacular Olympic return with top score in qualifying

• American makes dazzling comeback despite calf injury
• Tom Cruise and Ariana Grande join celebrities in crowd

As Simone Biles offered herself a few final quiet words of encouragement by the balance beam before she returned to compete in front of the world once again, the entire spectacle could have been so overwhelming. The Bercy Arena was already exploding with excitement whenever her name was mentioned. Countless celebrities, from Tom Cruise to Ariana Grande, lined the stands and flashed up on the screens. All eyes were on Biles, and she knew it.

The competition draw that Biles and her US teammates received was also unhelpful. They were required to start on the balance beam, the most unpredictable apparatus and the event that exposes all tension and uncertainty. If you cannot control your nerves, you will fall.